calliehunterfandomcom-20200213-history
Callie Hunter
: Calena Nicole Seacrest (born July 10, 1989) or better known by her stage name Callie Hunter is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, actress, and voice actor. She has won 7 SIMMYs Awards and came to prominence with her album Daydreaming. She has released a total of seven major label studio albums including Head In The Clouds which became one of 2016's top selling albums with a year-end total of over 5 million sold world wide. As of June 2018 Hunter has a total of five number one singles, two of which she is a featured vocalist. She is currently on her Sweetest Dreams Tour. 2010 - 2012: Mentorship and First Record Deal: : Callie Hunter was featured as a songwriter on the 2010 song "Blurred Vision" which peaked at number two on the Sims Billboard Hot 100 chart. At the time she was being mentored by producer Lukas Allard as a songwriter. Hunter would be featured as a writer on many album cuts of various artist through the early 2010s. In 2012, just weeks before her marriage to Marcus Winters, Callie Hunter was signed to Starlight Shores Records but soon dropped after disagreement on her artistic style. It is rumored that her album she worked on with that label was a rock album and was shelved with the label having intent to release the songs at a later date though they have yet to. 2013 - 2014: SMI, Debut Album, Major Success: : By early 2013, Broadway Records had signed Hunter following her drop from Starlight Shores Records though was in heavy financial trouble. The label was previously a leading label of pop and R&B in the 90s though lost success after Mariah Jahah and Whitney Dallas moved to SMI. By June of 2013, the music industry giant SMI had acquired the label and Hunter's contract. Seeing the potential of Callie Hunter, they decided to market her as the next Mariah. To do this the label catered Hunter's first album to an R&B audience. And just in two weeks of promotion her debut single "Baby I" peaked at number seven. Following this her debut album Daydreaming entered the album chart at number three. To keep the momentum of her new found popularity, SMI pushed Callie Hunter into the studio to make a second album to be released under the subsidiary reboot of Broadway Records as Broadway Music Group. By April 22nd, 2014 she released her sophomore album Happy Birthday which had debuted on the album chart at number one. She collaborated with DJ Calvin Ambrose (now clvnn) on her first #1 "Problem" and collaborated with Kanary on Hunter's second #1 and eventual top selling song of the year "Black Widow" which won the SIMMY for Song of the Year. By August 2014 she was yet again in the studio for her third studio album, The Art Of Letting Go. It spawned no singles and landed at #5 on the Album 200 chart before quickly dropping. It was labeled as an "embarrassment and a flop" with many saying that she relies too much on features than her own music. She has since disowned both The Art Of Letting Go and Happy Birthday. 2015: Fighter EP, The Essence Of Me Callie Hunter had announced that under unsatisfactory terms she left SMI. Quickly after, Callie began self writing and producing music so that fans would not be upset over two canceled albums. With some co-producing by mentor Lukas Allard, Hunter released the single "Bombastic" and the EP Fighter. Both had a departure from her R&B sound in a more pop direction. : In early August 2015 Callie Hunter announced that she signed with a new record label, Sync Music, and would begin on her new album shortly. Within a month’s time the album was completed and the single "We Belong Together" was released to heavy critical acclaim. "We Belong Together" entered the Hot 100 at #67 then jumped to #6, #4, then finally, after a high profile televised performance, the song jumped to #1. "We Belong Together" maintained its momentum for 4 weeks at #1. When the album, The Essence of Me, was released it was praised for its cohesive flow, honest lyrics, and pop sound. The album debuted on the Album 200 chart at #2 with 113,000 in equivalent sales (65,000 pure). Hunter often does not consider this album as part of her "cannon" as she was pushed into it's sound to ensure she was not forgotten after The Art Of Letting Go ''flopped so hard. She considers it part of her "dark era" but still performs and acknowledges the song "We Belong Together" 2016: ''Head In The Clouds and The PRIZM World Tour : During November of 2015, Callie Hunter returned to the studio to record for fun and to explore different types of music. While in the studio, Hunter had one-on-one sessions with producer Ilya Reynolds where the pair built a strong working relationship. Work continued on the record with Hunter only occasionally working with other songwriters and producers. On January 29th, 2016, Callie Hunter released “Ridiculous” featuring rapper Raquel Divar, the lead single from her then-untitled fifth album. The song “Be My Baby” was released as the second single. On March 11th, 2016, Callie Hunter released Head In The Clouds to major critical acclaim. Many critics praised the unique house-influence and trap sounds. The album debuted on the Album 200 chart at #1 where is remained for five non-consecutive weeks. The album completed the year with 17 weeks in the chart’s top 10 and became the #1 album of 2016. Subsequent single “Focus On Me” featuring Roy Ross was released in anticipation for a world tour. The song slowly made an appearance on the Hot 100 but in a sudden out-pour of streaming the song rocketed to #1 for a single week, breaking chart point records and streaming records. Later singles such as the disco-inspired song “On My Mind” and the EDM song “Adore” peaked within the top 10. In May 2016, Callie Hunter embarked on the PRIZM World Tour. The tour spanned only two months and traveled to multiple countries. In the summer of 2016, Hunter released the promotional single “Bad Decisions” as a stand alone song but would later be included on her next album. 2017: Kaleidoscope, ''Bad Decisions Tour, Hard Drive Loss : In January 2017, Callie Hunter announced a partnership with the clothing brand Myshuno Apparel to co-promote their retail stores and Hunter’s music. In March 2017, Callie Hunter released the single "Don't Break My Heart" which peaked at #3 on the Hot 100. On April 22, 2017 Hunter released her sixth studio album's lead single "Everything" and on May 12th, 2017 released her sixth album ''Kaleidoscope. : On September 1st, 2017 Callie Hunter embarked on the first leg of her Bad Decisions Tour. : While on tour Hunter worked on a new album from her personal computer. November 17th, 2017 the hard drive of her computer broke, resulting in the loss of months of work and at least 10 songs intended for an album in early 2018. She has since decided to put off recording new music until she was no longer touring. 2018: Celebrity House, Sweetest Dreams, Freezer Bunny Movie On March 14th, 2018, Callie Hunter was announced as a part of Season 5 of STV's reality TV competition show Celebrity House. The season will premiere on March 26th at 8/7 pm central. Hunter is one of 10 contestants on the show, featuring other high profile celebrities from musicians, actors, and social media influencers. Her promotional look was the most well received and is considered and early front runner. She made it to the Top Three and is the second person in the series history to have won three challenges and is statistically the second best contestant ever. On May 8th, 2018 Hunter announced the lead single from her upcoming seventh studio album, "Here Comes The Rain" to be released on May 18th. On May 25th, 2018 it was announced that Hunter would be reprising her role in the reboot of the Freezer Bunny movie franchise with a larger role in the plot, for Freezer Bunny: The Movie (2018). On June 29th, 2018, Callie Hunter announced her seventh studio album Sweetest Dreams, releasing it on August 24th, 2018 to universal acclaim. Later going on the Sweetest Dreams Listening Sessions Tour to promote the record. Sweetest Dreams debuted at #1 on the Album 200 chart becoming Hunter's fourth album to reach the top. 2019: Sweetest Dreams Tour, Sweetest Records On November 7th, 2018, Callie Hunter announced that she will embark on the first leg of her upcoming "Sweetest Dreams Tour" in January 2019. The first leg will feature 11 shows across the US. The tour is in support of her 2018 album Sweetest Dreams, ''which debuted at #1 on the Sims Billboard Album 200 chart. The opening acts are country artist Laila Rose and pop artist Jack Johnson. On December 16th, 2018, Callie Hunter announced an imprint label, Sweetest Records, under Sync Music. The new label will act as a place for Hunter to release any music she wants when she wants to as well as allowing her to develop artist of her own. The next day on December 17th, Hunter released the song "Take It Deep" which was recorded during the sessions for ''Sweetest Dreams. The song was universally lauded, breaking streaming records by being streamed 150,000,000 times in two days. Hunter said on December 19th, 2018, while celebrating the unexpected success of "Take It Deep," that she was currently working on a new project. Personal Life Callie Hunter was adopted by ex-Broadway actor Roy Solis and his wife Meghan at age 4 from Isla Paradiso. She grew up in Sunset Valley with sister Kylie “Kanary” Solis, who is also a recording artist. Callie Hunter married Marcus Winters on October 31st, 2012 after a short period of dating. Many close friends said they had a strong marriage and healthy relationship. However, following a miscarriage in mid-2014 the couple took time apart. In July 2015, Callie Hunter and Marcus Winters officially separated. Shortly after, Winters began dating actress Amber Audrey. During the summer of 2016 Callie Hunter started dating rapper Nathan Alvarez. In August 2016, Marcus Winters and Ambery Audrey announced their engagement. Shortly after Hunter and Alvarez announced their relationship and in early September 2016 Winters filed for divorce from Hunter, citing “irreconcilable differences.” The divorce was final March 2017 due to a mandatory waiting period for the state of California. In her interview with Velvoire Magazine for their May 2017 edition, Hunter said that she and Nathan Alvarez had broken up due to both of them having had been recording their albums so far apart they weren't able to see each other as often as they would have liked. While in London on her Bad Decisions Tour, Hunter was seen out having dinner with screenplay writer Dean Petersen, 40, who was acting affectionate with her. They're 12 years age difference was the center of short lived controversy. They were last seen together various times through out November 2017, after which is was assumed the two had broken things off. In December 2017, at the end of her Bad Decisions Tour rumors surfaced that Hunter was seeking treatment for an eating disorder and that it was the reason she did not decide to add more tour dates in spring 2018. On July 9th, 2018 Hunter confirmed she was in a relationship but rumors circulated that it was a short lived reunion with ex Dean Petersen, with the couple speculated to have once again broken up in early August 2018. The two were again seen in early December 2018 after Hunter had taken a break from the public eye to treat a serious depressive episode, though it is unclear if they are together again. Voice Callie Hunter is a lyrical soprano and uses vocal techniques such as melisma, whistle notes, and vocal growls. Her range is 4 Octaves, 2 notes, and one semitone from the low note Bb2 to the high note of D7. Though afraid of suffering vocal damage, she refrains from using whistle notes often and generally stays within her mid-register. Positives: Her voice is clear and bright in her mid-range and extends vocal strength from her mid-range to her head voice seamlessly. Her low notes are generally dark and husky and unsupported while her whistle notes are strong and clear, though lack resonance and are strained. Her belting ability was formally weak but has grown with her confidence over time. Negatives: Her voice is generally faced with criticism for being generic or lacking emotion in her mid range and that her low notes lack resonance. As her voice gets higher while belting, it thins out and becomes raspy. She also has drawn criticism following her Bad Decisions Tour for not having the stamina to support an extended tour, though this has also been credited to her looking under weight at the end of the 2017. Recommended Songs: "We Belong Together" "Sweetest Dreams" & "Echoes" (her longest sustained note) Discography Studio Albums *''Daydreaming'' (2013) *''Happy Birthday'' (2014) * The Art Of Letting Go (2014) * The Essence Of Me (2015)The Art of Letting Go *''Head In The Clouds'' (2016) *''Kaleidoscope'' (2017) *''Sweetest Dreams'' (2018) Holiday Albums * Winter Wonderland (Compilation) (2015) EPs (Extended Plays) *Baby, It's Cold Outside - EP (2013) * Fighter (2015) Singles (order of release) * Baby I (2013) * Pink Champagne (2013) * Problem (ft. Callie Hunter, Iris Kingsley) (2014) * Black Widow (ft. Callie Hunter) (2014) * Christmas Kisses (2014) * Bombastic (2015) * Call For You (2015) * We Belong Together (2015) * Ridiculous (2016) * Be My Baby (2016) * Focus On Me (2016) * On My Mind (2016) * Adore (ft. clvnn) (2016) * Bad Decisions (2016) * Me & The Rhythm (2017) * Don't Break My Heart (2017) * Tale As Old As Time (From the Motion Picture "Enchanted Beauty") (2017) * Everything (2017) * Gin & Juice (2017) * I Have A Feeling (2017) * Moonlight Avenue (2017) * Every Day Is Christmas (2017) * Here Comes The Rain (2018) * Something Beautiful (2018) * Sweetest Dreams (2018) Magazine Cover Story *Americana Magazine (July 2014) * TS34 Magazine (April 2015) * Sims Billboard Magazine (March 2016) * Velvoire Magazine (May 2017) * Hits Magazine (August 2018) TV Talk Show Appearances * STV Tonight (March 18, 2016) (Musical Guest) * Tonight! Live (May 23rd, 2018) (Main Guest/Musical Guest) Headlining Live Shows * Hello, Callie! Tour (2013) * Teenage Birthday Tour (2014) * I Am Free Tour (2015) * Prizm World Tour (2016) * The Focus On Me Live Show (2016) * Bad Decisions Tour (2017) * Sweetest Dreams: Listening Sessions (2018) * Sweetest Dreams Tour (2019) Filmography * The Freezer Bunny Movie (2013) * The Mystery Team: The Movie (2016) * Freezer Bunny: The Movie (2018) Minor Awards and Honors * For the first annual SCN (Sims Cable Network) December Awards, Callie Hunter was nominated by the donation based show for "Best Breakout Artist." On December 21st, 2013, she won the title after raising a total of $5,326, which was a close $291 above Ely Gold who's hit single topped the charts for 2 weeks. Later that night she performed her song "I Heart The 50s" live as her first televised event. * December 12th, 2015 The December Awards were held with Callie Hunter being honored as the main sponsor of the unique award show and their main means on promotion, though this led many to question if the show was fixed in her favor for this particular show. However critics were silenced after The Essence Of Me lost "Best R&B Album" to Ely Gold's debut album "At Last" though Hunter did win both Best Song and Best Vocal Performance for "We Belong Together" later that night. * On January 2nd, 2016, Callie Hunter was announced as one of the performers for the 2016 Sims Choice Awards, an awards show for movies, music, and television. She also earned her first nominations from the show, Favorite Song for "We Belong Together" and Favorite Female Artist. She debuted her new single "Ridiculous" as the song is released the day of the show, Jan. 29th. * June 19th, 2016 the nominees for the annual Sims Billboard Awards were announced. The show took place on July 15th, 2016 honoring the songs and albums released throughout the first half of 2016. Hunter was meant to perform but was unable to due to scheduling conflicts and did not attend. Callie Hunter was nominated 13 times in 11 categories and won 5 awards including the following: ** Best Hot 100 Song - for "Ridiculous" featuring Raquel Divar Won ** Best Album 200 Set (Album/EP) - for Head In The Clouds ** Best Pop Radio Hit - for "Ridiculous" featuring Raquel Divar ** Best Rhythmic Radio Hit - for "Focus On Me" featuring Roy Ross ** Best Adult Pop Hit - for "Renegade Vixen" ** Biggest International Song - for "Ridiculous" featuring Raquel Divar ** Top Streaming Song - for "Focus On Me" featuring Roy Ross Won ** Top Streaming Album - for Head In The Clouds Won ** Hot 100 Artist Won ** Album 200 Artist ** Hottest Collaboration *** "Ridiculous" featuring Raquel Divar *** "Focus On Me" featuring Roy Ross *** "Moulin Rouge" featuring Ely Gold, Ororo Ramiki, Callie Hunter, Jamiss Won * After winning four December Awards over the course of her career, Hunter was nominated for multiple for the 2016 show and was announced to be the main sponsor for the second year in a row. Hunter was nominated for Best Female Artist, the Head In The Clouds album was nominated for Best Album, her song "Ridiculous" was nominated for Best Song and along with "Focus On Me," Best Collaboration. For the first time Hunter was also nominated for Best Live Show for her PRIZM World Tour. ** At the 2016 December Awards, where a total of $2.3 million dollars were raised, Hunter raised $346,000. Head In The Clouds won Best Album while Hunter won Best Female Artist, both for the first time. * In July 2017, Callie Hunter recieved various nominations for the innagural Music Visual Awards (to take place August 27th, 2017). ** Best Album Art Direction - for Kaleidoscope ** Best Album Cover Artwork - for Kaleidoscope ** Visual Artist of The Year * On November 3rd, 2017 the nominees for the fifth annual December Awards were announced. The show will take place on December 17th, 2017. Callie Hunter was nominated for Best Tour for the Bad Decisions Tour and for Best Female Music Artist. * On July 30th, 2018, the Sims Billboard Awards were announced to take place August 19th, 2018. Hunter received five nominations, the most of any female artist that year.. She performed her single "Something Beautiful" during the show with large, kitschy cloud decor and simulated rain giving way to a rainbow backdrop in the finale chorus. It was well received. Hunter ended up winning two awards. ** Best Hot 100 Hit - for "Here Comes The Rain" ** Best Pop Radio Hit - for "Here Comes The Rain" Won ** Top Streaming Song - for "Here Comes The Rain" ** Top Hot 100 Artist ** Best Live Act - for the "Bad Decisions Tour" Won SIMMY Awards and Nominations Callie Hunter has been nominated for a total 19 Recording Academy Awards as of the 2018 nomination season, making her one of the highest nominated artists of all time. Her first nomination was for the 2014 ceremony when her debut major label release was nominated for "Best Pop Vocal Album" but lost to Mariah Jahah's "Rivers" album. After the 2017 ceremony Hunter had won an additional two with a total of 7 Simmy Awards with an additional honorable Simmy Award for co-writing the 2016 Song Of The Year winner "Didn't We Try Hard Enough" by Ely Gold. After the 2017 nominations were announced Callie Hunter tied with R&B artist Riah with the most nominations at 8 each. Cassidya-Rose Williams was behind them with 7 making it the first time the top three artist were female. It was also announced that Callie Hunter would open the 2017 show. For the 2018 season, Hunter had the lowest amount of nominations in a single year since 2014. Considered a "Critical Darling" her title began to wain after a underwhelming, though successful, 2017. After her album Head In The Clouds won album of the year this is credited to the "Winner's Curse" where the winner of the night's biggest award has an unsuccessful award season after. She was not announced as one of the night's performers but continued the tradition of prior year's Album Of The Year winner presenting the award to the new winner. Hunter also did not win any awards at the 2018 show but she was the top trending topic of the evening for her red carpet look. Her improved makeup , bangs, and fitted dress were the main points of topic giving her visibility and adding public interest in her upcoming album. SIMMY Nominations/Wins 2014 Ceremony * Best Pop Vocal Album - "Daydreaming" Lost 2015 Ceremony * Album of the Year - Happy Birthday Lost * Song of the Year - Writer's credits on "Black Widow" Won * Female Artist of the Year Lost * Best Pop Collaboration: ** "Problem" Won ** "Black Widow" Lost 2016 Ceremony * Record Of The Year - "We Belong Together" Won * Female Artist Of The Year Lost * Best R&B/Hip-Hop Song - "Empire (ft. Callie Hunter)" Won 2017 Ceremony * Album Of The Year - ''Head In The Clouds ''Won * Song Of The Year - "Ridiculous" Lost * Record Of The Year - "Focus On Me" Lost * Best Female Artist Lost * Best Pop Vocal Album - Head In The Clouds ''Lost * Best Collaboration: ** "Focus On Me" featuring Roy Ross Lost ** "Moulin Rouge" featuring Ororo Ramiki, Ely Gold, Jamiss, Callie Hunter Lost * '''Best Remix - "Focus On Me (Remix)" Won' 2018 Ceremony * Best Pop Vocal Performance - "Me & The Rhythm" Lost * Best Album Packaging - ''Kaleidoscope ''Lost Philanthropy In 2016, Callie Hunter endorsed Carley Massey for National Leader. Massey would later invite Hunter to advocate for her charity organization World Untied throughout 2017 with Hunter donating $25,000 to the company over the holiday season to use for poverty stricken families. Endorsements In January 2017, Myshuno Apparel announced that Callie Hunter would endorse their brand for 2017. At the same time Myshunoe Apparel will help promote Hunter's sixth studio album by playing her songs on their in-store radio and using them in ads. The first song to debut on the store's radio playlist was an early demo of "It's Alright" External Links *Twitter: www.twitter.com/TheCallieHunter *Facebook: www.facebook.com/callie.hunter.75 *Tumblr: calliehunter.tumblr.com *Musicshake: eng.musicshake.com/user/CallieHunter